They Won't Understand
by BrittSmiles4BTR
Summary: Kendall sighed in a fit of frustration. "Unbelievable! What else could go wrong!" He huffed as he threw back his covers and laid his head down on his pillow, wondering how things had gotten so out of hand... Co-written by ButterYUM. Rated K for mild violence.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N- Well, after writing, and rewriting, then writing, then rewriting... I finally perfected my story. Anyway, this is my first story, and I'm all for constructive criticism, but please be nice.**

**Disclaimer- I DO NOT OWN BIG TIME RUSH!**

Chapter One

They Can't Know

Crying was for babies.

At least, that was what ten year old Kendall Knight tried to convince himself while he attempted to clean his wound. Kendall was always telling everybody that crying was for babies- it's what he would tell Carlos after he'd wipe out during a stunt, or what he'd tell Logan whenever he got hurt. And the fact that he practically had tears rolling down his face made him feel like a hypocrite.

Kendall was the official, unofficial leader and leaders didn't cry. Him crying would be like Carlos not eating corndogs, Logan not reading and James not using his lucky comb- it was unnatural. So he forced himself to put on a brave face for his friends.

He hissed under his breath as he applied the disinfectant to the wound, then dabbed it with his cotton swab. He and his ten year old brain couldn't understand how so much pain could harbor from such a small cut.

Kendall was really considering finding Logan and letting him help him clean his wound; after all his shorter friend was training to become a doctor. But when he thought it over, he realized that then he'd have to tell Logan what happened and he refused to allow that to happen.

He looked around his bedroom for the bandages, finally remembering he stashed them away in his dresser drawer. Gingerly, without jolting his injured arm, he pried the drawer open and rummaged through it. At last, he found the small Band-Aid at the bottom and pulled it out with trembling fingers.

The faintest knock on the door made him jump; he nearly dropped the bandage. He froze. He hoped that it wasn't his mother on the other side of the door; he'd made a valiant effort to keep this a secret. If she were to walk in and see him like this, his entire cover would be blown.

He whipped around and listened carefully for any noise to follow. "Kendall," a tiny voice called from the other side. "are you in there?" He recognized the voice of his youngest friend.

Kendall let out a sigh of relief. "Yeah! I'm in here Carlos."

The little Latino boy let himself in; he pushed the door open a crack and somehow managed to squeeze himself through. After he shut the door behind him, he made his way over to his friend. "Hey, Kendall." Carlos mumbled, rubbing his arm timidly.

"Hey, buddy." Kendall greeted back, turning back to his bandaid. "What's up?"

"That's kind of what I wanted to ask you. Are you ok?" Carlos asked.

Kendall's friends were incredibly blunt, straight forward people, and Kendall knew that; he simply hadn't been expecting it from his youngest, most naive, innocent friend. "Y-Yeah, buddy. I'm fine." Kendall said, fiddling with the bandaid and trying to get it open.

"Here, give me that." Kendall sighed as he handed it over to Carlos. As Carlos picked at the crease of the wrapper, he eyed his friend. "So why did you leave so fast today, you know, after school?"

"I was-?"

"And where were you at lunch?" Carlos pressed before he could get a chance to speak.

Kendall bit his lip; he was at a loss of what to do. He couldn't tell Carlos about what was happening, but he couldn't lie to him either. Kendall sighed and looked away, unable to look at his friend's innocent eyes.

Carlos noticed and looked at the back of Kendall's head with hurt in his eyes. "Kendall, are you mad at us?" That got Kendall's attention; his head snapped back. He was unable to mask the shocked expression. "Did we do something wrong?"

"N-No, Carlos, buddy it's nothing like that! It's just-" he paused, thinking over his words carefully before continuing. "I've got a lot going on in my life right now, alright?"

"Ok." Carlos mumbled through a grunt as he tore open the wrapping of the bandage; Carlos's hands were smaller than Kendall, so he was able to get it open with ease. Carlos peeled it off and placed it on for Kendall. "There you go."

"Thanks Carlitos." Kendall said sincerely, patting his friend's shoulder.

"No problem. You know, the dinosaurs really suit you quite well." Carlos teased.

Kendall's cheeks instantly became a deep shade of crimson and he looked down at the bandage on his elbow. He playfully punched Carlos' shoulder at his attempt at levity. "Shut up!"

Carlos smiled brightly before his face went serious again. "What happened to your arm anyway?"

"I- uh- fell off my skate board." Kendall lied, although he was inwardly cringing. He hated having to lie to his friend.

Carlos hissed in sympathy. "Bummer, dude." He said and Kendall nodded along. There was a long silence and they both looked around the room, thinking about what to say. Finally, Carlos spoke up again. "Kendall, are you sure you're ok?"

"Carlos, I already told you I'm fine!" Kendall snapped but clasped his hands over his mouth. He hadn't meant to snap at him like that, and when he saw Carlos' hurt, puppy dog face, he instantly regretted it. "I'm so sorry; I didn't mean to-?"

"It's ok, Kendall." Carlos said, but he still seemed sad.

Kendall looked at his friend, smiling a big, toothy, mischievous grin. "Want to go play video games?"

Suddenly Carlos was back to his old happy self. "Yeah!" He cried with a grin of his own as he jumped up and down in excitement.

"Well, come on!" Kendall urged as he led him out of his room.

Kendall sighed, feeling relieved that his friend didn't find out much about the secret. He feared that if his friend would have badgered him anymore, he would have cracked and told him everything; and he couldn't let that happen. After all, it was a secret. And he was determined to keep it a secret...

**Well, what do you think? **

**Constructive criticism is welcome and please, please, PLEASE PM me or leave a review if you have any questions! I want to know what you (the readers) are thinking! **

**That's all I've got, but until next time: **

**Peace, Love and Happiness!**

**-BrittSmiles4BTR**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N- Hi guys! Thanks for all of the positive reviews! They made me so happy! I was so nervous about posting this, but when I saw how much you guys liked it, I felt relieved. I'm all for constructive criticism, but please remember to be nice.**

**Thank you to:  
CHEW-A-STRAW  
Violet  
Rusher Driver  
DDDD  
ButterYUM  
KiBoy  
Anonymous Skrtle  
livelearnlovesing  
BigTimeRush-BTR  
For all of your reviews!**

**Disclaimer- I DO NOT OWN BIG TIME RUSH!**

**So, here's chapter two. I hope you like it!**

Chapter Two

And So The Truth Comes Out...

The next day, everything went as it normally did.

Well, as "normal" as Kendall would have hoped. The guys showed up to his house that afternoon after school and discovered that Kendall had yet another injury. This time it was a bruise on his shoulder; but he informed everyone that it was ok because he got it by simply tripping over one of his sister's toys into the wall. Not a big deal, right?

Well, that seemed to be enough for James, who rolled his eyes at his clumsiness. Heck, it was even enough to put Logan at ease; Logan was always worried about everything-especially injuries- so that had to mean he was ok, _right_?

However, for some reason, Carlos couldn't escape the feeling of doubt in his stomach; the feeling like he was being lied to.

But could you blame him, though? The old Kendall he knew was never this clumsy. If anything, the older, blond haired boy had the most grace out of all of them put together. The last time Kendall had gotten hurt due to his own clumsiness was... Actually, Carlos couldn't even remember the last time Kendall had gotten hurt due to lack of grace. Normally, it was Carlos who was tripping over his own two feet; the boys would always joke around and tell Carlos that he should start bring his hockey helmet to school instead of just to practice, considering all the times the Latino boy had injured himself. And the fact that the tables suddenly turned worried him.

Kendall was usually very light on his feet- even on skates- and always seemed to be aware of his surroundings. Hearing that Kendall was just all of a sudden clumsy and uncoordinated was beyond him.

And on top of all the odd behavior, when the boys noticed Kendall concealing a bruise and questioned him about it, Kendall let out a long "Uhhhh" before answering.

Anyone who knew Kendall Knight knew that he was a schemer and was really good at coming up with answers under pressure; whether it was coming up with an excuse to tell the teacher to bail Carlos out of detention, or coming up with a plan to fix his mother's living room vase after they broke it while playing hockey in the house, Kendall always seemed to have an answer. When Kendall said "Uhhhh," like that, it normally meant that he was stalling, trying to come up with an excuse in his head to say. But that's what was confusing Carlos; if he were being honest, why would he need to think it over?

Carlos shook his head. _Ridiculous_; he had to be being ridiculous! Kendall couldn't be lying to him; Kendall was his best friend and would tell him if there was something bothering him! It was what he always told them when they were having trouble; that they should tell each other if there were something wrong, so he had to follow his own advice, right? Kendall would never lie to his friends...

Still, as Carlos sat on the far left of the couch, staring him down, he couldn't help but wonder if Kendall was actually telling them the truth.

No one seemed to notice at first. As Kendall continued to fiddle with the TV, switching cords and swooping them out from the back of VSH player, the boys were forced to wait in silence. Carlos' eyes never left the back of Kendall's head, watching his every move like a hawk was was preparing to pounce. But the quiet didn't last long, because before long; a little girl with dark brown hair waltzed into the living room, catching the boys by surprise. Carlos forced his eyes off of Kendall.

"Katie!" Kendall whined, glaring daggers at his little sister. "What are you doing here? Mom said you were going to the park!"

"But it's raining outside; so I'm going to stay here and watch the movie with my big brother!" The four year old proclaimed, squeezing herself in between Logan and Kendall. She leaned onto her brother, hugging his arm and staring up at him with big, brown eyes.

Kendall heaved a heavy sigh, trying hard to keep his face from scrunching up in pain.

He forced his expression to soften as he looked down at his little sister. "Katie, I love you, but Mom said that you had to leave us alone today." Kendall exclaimed. Katie's face fell. "Why don't you go play in your room, and then when the guys go home, we'll play, ok?"

Katie let it a sigh of her own. "Ok, big brother." She slid off the couch. "Bye Kendall's friends." she said sadly, and with that she trudged sadly out of the room. Kendall waited for the footsteps heading up the stairs, but didn't hear any. He assumed that Katie had gone to the kitchen to play.

"Why didn't you just let her watch the movie with us, Kendall?" Logan asked once Katie had left. Kendall slid off the couch and placed the VHS tape into its player.

"Because she always talks through the movies and asks me the same questions over and over."

"Dude, she's four!" Logan argued with a chuckle.

"Yeah, but it's annoying!"

"Well I think it's cute!" James said with a smile. The grin on his face vanished at the glances he was receiving. "Not that kind of cute, you sickos! I mean _'little sister_' cute!" The boys seemed to relax.

"Whatever! Let's just watch the movie!" Kendall tried to ignore the giggles emanating from his friends and rolled his eyes.

The movie began and the room was suddenly silent. No one dared to say a word as they stared intently at the screen. Every once in a while, one of the boys would gasp at some unexpected violence or laugh at a joke, but no one made a peep besides that. The room was tranquil, peaceful and calm as the boys practically glued their eyes to the screen. Nothing but the sound of their breathing and the movie playing...

Everyone seemed to be enjoying the movie... Well, everyone except for Carlos...

The youngest, spiky haired boy had his eyes fixed-not on the TV, but- on Kendall, continuing his one-sided staring contest. Since Kendall was on the far right and he was on the far left, he had to look passed James and Logan to stare at him. Unfortunately for Carlos, his staring didn't go as unnoticed as he would have hoped.

"Carlos why are you looking at me like that?" Kendall said, bringing the Latino boy back to reality. Kendall hadn't even looked up, so how he managed to know that Carlos was staring at him was beyond him. Carlos tried to pretend like he had been looking at the TV and not boring holes into the side of Kendall's skull, but it was too late, Kendall had already seen him. Kendall let out a grunt of frustration when Carlos' worried eyes met his again. "Carlos, I'm _fine_! Logan, tell him that I'm fine!" Kendall ordered his smaller friend next to him.

"Carlos, Kendall is fine," Logan said with a sigh. It didn't help the youngest boy's uneasy feeling at all.

"Thank you! Honestly, normally I'd have to tell you that Logan!" Kendall exclaimed, laughing a bit when Logan punched him in the arm.

Logan paused the movie and turned to face him. "Carlos! It's just a little bruise! We get them all the time at hockey practice! No big deal!" Logan said with a reassuring smile.

"Yeah, 'Litos, since when did you become such a worrywart?" James chimed in, giving Carlos a playful nudge.

Carlos let out what sounded like a combination of a whine, a grunt, a whimper and a growl. Now he was a worrywart like Logan? Carlos was supposed to be the easy going one- the one who let everything just roll off his shoulders- not an uptight, worrywart! When was this weird, topsy-turvy madness going to end?! Feeling indignant with James' comment, he tried to defend himself. "Does it make me a worrywart to care about my friends' health?" He stood up to face them.

"It does if you sit there and stare at me like I've got a second head growing out of my neck!" Kendall flared back, leaping from the couch. He stood in front of Carlos, glaring down at the boy while the younger glared up. They scowled into each others' eyes, practically nose to nose.

Suddenly, they were pushed apart by Logan, who managed to squeeze himself in the middle and push them away from each other.

"Come on you guys, let's not fight!" Logan warned, keeping his arms at arm length.

"Yeah, you guys! Come on! Don't you want to watch The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles?"

There was a long pause, each child waiting for the other to speak. When no one did, Kendall let out another iysigh.

"You're right; we shouldn't be fighting. I'm sorry Carlos," the taller boy said, sheepishly rubbing the back of his neck.

"Yeah, me too." Carlos mumbled. Logan and James sighed in relief and Logan put his arms down.

"You know what, to make it up to you, why don't Carlos and I make us some snacks!" Before any of his friends could protest, Kendall leaped forward, snagging the bewildered boy by his arm and dragging him to the kitchen.

It wasn't until Kendall had managed to drag him all the way to down the hall and into the kitchen before Carlos was able to wrench his arm out of his grasp. "Kendall!" Carlos protested. "Why'd you do that?"

"I know! Sorry! I just needed to talk to you! Here, hold this." Kendall said, shoving a tray into Carlos' hands.

"Ok, what do you want to talk about?"

"I don't know," Kendall said, ripping off the plastic wrapping on the popcorn and sliding it into the microwave. "Look, I'm sorry I snapped at you again. I'm just so used to being the one who has to worry and protect you. And I get frustrated when you feel you need to protect me," Kendall climbed up onto the counter, opened a cupboard and pulled out a big, red bowl. Kendall climbed back down, setting the bowl down for a moment as he dropped down beside Carlos.

"It's ok," Carlos finally answered, watching him walk over to his refrigerator. Kendall's figure disappeared behind the door and Carlos continued in a louder voice. "I'm sorry too. I guess I shouldn't have worried so much." Carlos' gaze never left the spot on the fridge where he thought Kendall would be standing if he could see him. The refrigerator door suddenly slammed shut and Kendall returned with four canned sodas and the big bowl, which he piled on the tray. "Kendall," Carlos choked through a sigh; the tray had become heavy all too quickly. He placed a tray on the counter beside him and then continued. "Why don't you want to talk about your bruises? I could help you."

"Carlos, it's not as simple as you think." Kendall explained, opening the door when the timer went off. He pinched the corner of the popcorn, ripping the corner ever so gently as he dumped its contents of the bag into the bowl.

Carlos observed him as did this, but continued as if he hadn't spoken. "Don't you always tell us that you shouldn't keep secrets from your friends?"

"Well, yeah, but-?"

"Am I not your friend, Kendall?"

"No, Carlos of course your my friend!"

"And do you trust me?"

"What kind of a question is that? Of course I-?"

"Then why won't you tell me what's wrong so that I can help you fix it!" Carlos pressed, crossing his arms.

Kendall let out a long breath of air, passing his fingers through his hair and pacing for a moment. When he was done, he turned back to Carlos, leaning on the counter. "You won't understand Carlos!"

"Then help me understand! What's going on?"

"Look Carlos, it's really nothing to worry about, alright?" He stepped forward, placing a hand on his shoulder. "It's just some kid who's been messing with me. But I'm handling it, alright? I promise you; nothing bad's going to happen to me."

Carlos wanted the sigh in relief, but he couldn't. He didn't know why, but he had the sinking feeling in his gut telling him that something was wrong. Carlos has had his share of people being mean to him and "messing with him". So he knew what it felt like; it felt awful, like the world was against him. So to see Kendall acting like it didn't affect him at all was more troubling to say the least.

"Are you sure?" Carlos asked skeptically, looking at his friend through narrowed eyes.

"Carlitos I'm positive!" Kendall said with a tone in his voice that expressed confidence.

Carlos eyed his expression carefully; Kendall looked like he was telling the truth, but he couldn't be sure. He sighed, allowing his expression and his body to relax. He sighed. "O-Ok," he muttered softly, and he watched Kendall's expressions instantly relax. Carlos pointed an accusing finger at him before Kendall could get too excited. "but if it gets any worse than this, I'm telling someone! No matter what!" He warned, tried to sound as adamant as possible.

Before Kendall could object, they heard screaming and thumping from the living room. "Guys quick! The movies starting!" Logan called.

"Let's just get the snacks!" Kendall urged; he darted passed Carlos, picked up the tray of snacks and shoved it back into the younger boys hands. Carlos sighed deeply as Kendall retreated back to the living room; that day had been an extremely weird day. Not only had he gone through the day being worried and pessimistic like Logan, but he also gave an inspirational speech, like Kendall. On top of that, Logan had been laid back and didn't freak out about Kendall's injury, and -come to think of it-James had yet to touch his lucky comb!

"Logan! Sit still!" James yelled from the living room and suddenly there was a thud! Carlos winced; he'd geared that same thud enough times to know that someone had fallen. He was willing to bet anything that that sound was the sound of Logan falling off the couch. "Maybe _you _should be the one who has to where the helmet!"

Carlos' eyes widened- normally James would have to tell HIM that. "Yup," he muttered with a nod to himself as he followed with sluggishly behind. "Definitely a weird day! Logan, you better not hurt yourself in there!"

As Kendall and Carlos returned to the living room to the other guys, a frightened Katie scrambled out of her hiding place behind the counter. Her apple had been long since forgotten as she darted off to her mother's room to tell her about what she had recently discovered...

**Well, there you have it. What did you think?**

**Please remember that you are free to Review as well as PM me if you have any questions or anything; I want to know what you guys are thinking.**

**Well, that's it for now. Until next time:**

**Peace, Love and Happiness!**

**-BrittSmiles4BTR**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey guys! Sorry for the long wait for chapter three! I've been sick and I haven't been allowed to go my computer, therefore no FanFiction. :P**

**Thanks to:**

**Anonymous Skrtle**

**ButterYUM **

**Rusher Driver**

**winterschild11**

**KiBoy **

**For all of your positive reviews! It may not seem like it, but you guys are really helping me a lot by letting me know what you think. And seeing that you review really makes me happy. Thank you! :)**

**Disclaimer- I DO NOT OWN BIG TIME RUSH!**

**So, without further adieu, Chapter Three!**

Chapter Three

What's He Hiding?

Carlos was trying really hard to be as inconspicuous and stealth like as possible.

The guys had all made plans to meet up at Logan's house to play some street hockey. So they split up into their usual teams-tall guys versus small guys- and started the game. As they played, Carlos couldn't help but smile at Kendall. The leader had yet to injure himself, he didn't trip over his feet or anything else's, and for the first time in a long time, the boy truly seemed happy. And he thought that maybe, just maybe, things were getting back to normal.

Everything was all fine and dandy, but the moment things started getting to rough, Kendall slowed down and eventually quit.

"Hey!" James said when he noticed his teammate was no longer participating. With James momentarily distracted, Carlos was able to steel the puck from him, and was running towards the goal. It took a minute to get what was happening to register in James' brain and when it did, he turned to glare at Carlos. "Wait a minute; Carlos, time out!" James shouted just before Carlos was going to score a point between the unguarded trash cans.

Carlos froze, his foot in the air and his tongue hanging out, fully ready to slap the puck into between the two trash cans. "Aww!" He whined, dropping his stick and slumping his shoulders. He marched back over to where he'd left his friends. "What?" He snapped, Logan smacked him in the back of his helmeted head. "Ow!" He whined, scowling at the smart boy while he fixed helmet. "What was that for?" but Logan simply pointed at Kendall, who was busy shrugging off his jersey. "Ohhhh..." Logan rolled his eyes, but walked back over to where Kendall was, dragging Carlos along by his arm.

James was already there, staring down at his blond friend. "What are you doing, man?" James asked, gesturing to Kendall as he ripped off his shin guards.

"Yeah, dude, you can't just quit because you're about to lose!" Carlos chimed in. James nodded in agreement, until he actually realized what Carlos had said, then he smacked the back Carlos' head. "Ow!" He muttered, reaching a hand back to rub it.

"Seriously, what's wrong, dude?" James asked, sitting down beside him.

"I have to meet my sister at the park! I totally forgot about her! Mom's going to kill me!" Kendall exclaimed, shoving his stuff into his duffle bag.

Carlos watched him with sad eyes, physically refraining himself from asking any questions; the last couple of times he done that he got snapped at by Kendall and called a worrywart by James and Logan. He didn't want another repeat of that.

Kendall got up and turned on his heel. "I'll see you guys later!" He called back, waving over his shoulder.

"But what about our game?" Logan protested.

"I'll play later!" Kendall exclaimed, and with that he was gone, leaving his friends standing there with puzzled expressions.

"What was that about?" Logan asked, watching him leave. James jumped to his feet to stand beside him.

"I don't know. He's been acting strange lately." James commented.

Carlos nodded in agreement as he watched his friend leave; he was relieved, yet surprised, that they'd noticed Kendall's strange behavior.

Carlos watched him leave in silence. He wanted to believe Kendall; every fiber in his being wanted to believe that Kendall was telling the truth, but he couldn't escape that horrid, sickening feeling in the pit of his stomach that was advising him otherwise. Kendall had lied twice within the passed two days. Whose to say that he wasn't lying now?

Carols decided that he was going to see for himself if Kendall was lying or not, and what better way to do that than to get a little sneaky.

He looked back at his two best friends; he wasn't surprised to find that they looked as bewildered as he felt. Carlos knew that if he simply told his friends that he was going to spy on Kendall, they'd insist on coming along and that would only slow him down. So carefully he began concocting a plan that would enable him to sneak away unnoticed. Unfortunately, most of his plans were discarded for being too complicated and time consuming.

Carlos wished that Kendall was there beside him- being the older blonde haired boy was great at scheming- but had to mentally kick himself when he remembered why he needed a plan in the first place. To spy on Kendall! If Kendall were with him, Carlos wouldn't need a plan to spy on him, thus rendering this whole thing redundant. _Duh!_

Carlos thought harder, feeling the wheels in his head turning as he wracked his brain for ideas. His eyes darted back and forth as he attempted to picture his scheme in his mind until finally... He gave up. He decided that he was just going to go with the tactic that he always used. Man, Kendall makes it look so easy!

He nonchalantly pushed his hands inside his pockets, feigning innocence as he rocked back and forth on the heels and toes of his shoes.

"Well," Carlos began, taking a cautious step back. "since the teams are uneven now, I'm just going to go _polishmyhelmet_! Bye!" Before either of the older boys could question him, he spun on his heel and booked it. He narrowly avoided getting grabbed by James as he took off in a sprint down the road.

"Wait!" They called after him, but they were ignored.

"Darn it!" James yelled, throwing his stick down in a fit of rage. "I hate it when he does that!" James turned back to Logan. "I hate them." Logan rolled his eyes, knowing James was just kidding. There was a small silence before James nudged him. "Do you want to play one on one?"

"But shouldn't we go after them?"

"Yeah, you're right...Logan did you hear that?"

"What? Do you hear a car coming?" Logan asked, looking down the street in a panic.

"No, it's the sound of your butt begging to be kicked!"

Logan smirked, catching on to James' playful banter. "Is that a challenge?"

"Bring it, small fry!"

"Small fry?! Oh it's on!" And so the game began, thoughts of their two other friends long forgotten as they tried desperately to get the puck.

So now there he was, Carlos had ran as fast he could before Kendall gave up on his jog and decided to walk, giving Carlos a chance to catch up to he finally did, he tried to stay far enough that Kendall wouldn't notice he was there, but close enough that he could still see him.

When he finally got close enough to Kendall, he took in a huge sigh of relief. His young mind couldn't comprehend just how fast Kendall was capable of moving, and a side from a few occasions- Carlos had seen Kendall move incredibly fast on skates during hockey games, and he had been there to witness a him challenge James to a few races- those were nothing compared to how fast he had went a few moments ago. Carlos figured that Kendall's longer legs gave him the extra advantage.

Carlos ducked behind a tree, poking his head out to make sure his cover hadn't been blown. "Ok!" He whispered into his imaginary walkie talkie in his watch. "Operation Catch-Kendall-In-The-Act-So-I-Can-Find-Out-Who's-Been-Messing-With-Him-And-Help-Him is underway!" He swiftly draped a pair of sunglasses over his face, but in doing so, he lost track of where Kendall had gone. "Aww hockey pucks!" Carlos cursed out of force of habit. Kendall had reprimanded him on multiple occasions, warning him that the phrase was never going to catch on, but the more he was scolded, the more he used it. "Target sighted!" He muttered, and he rolled out from behind the tree and crept closely behind Kendall.

Carlos was struggling to remain on his tip toes and as he continued to sneak behind Kendall with such stealth and grace that he was beginning to scare himself, his mind began so wonder. Even though Carlos had managed to sneak behind Kendall for five blocks and the blond boy had yet to notice him, Carlos was thinking it would be much easier to be a spy if he had all the right spy gear; like binoculars, a spy cam or even a pen that shot lasers! But for now, his hockey helmet was sufficing just fine.

Just as he said, Kendall lead Carlos right to the park. He breathed a sigh of relief, feeling a small weight being lifted off of his shoulders. Kendall really did need to pick up his sister from the park. Kendall had told him the truth. Maybe there wasn't a real reason to worry.

Kendall froze and, without thinking, Carlos dove behind the nearest tree. He pressed his back against it and held his breath, making a conscious effort not to make a sound. He squeezed his eyes shut, waiting for the footsteps to approach and praying that Kendall wouldn't be too mad when he found Carlos spying. But instead he got nothing; nothing but the sound of his footsteps getting fainter. He peeked his head out and confirmed that Kendall was walking away at the sight of him heading towards the swings.

He tried to see what was happening but Kendall kept getting in the way. Carlos reasoned with himself that he would get a much clearer idea of what was happening with a birds eye view.

Gingerly he wrapped his arms around the tree trunk and attempted to heave himself up. It was a lot tougher than it looked because unlike the rope that he had to climb during gym that had knots to hold him up, the tree was bigger around and he had nothing but bark that was too fragile to hold onto.

He tried using his shoes as leverage, but the bottoms of them were like slippery eels the way they were sliding off the tree trunks. Suddenly, he began to slide off the side again. He attempted to catch himself by grabbing onto an outstretched piece of bark, but only managed to slice his hand on it. As a result, he fell off.

He wasn't that far up, so the fall didn't faze him; he simply wiped his newly blood soaked hand his shirt and he shimmied up again. He climbed up to the first branch he could see, which was quite a ways up, and sat down on it, cradling his new injury to his chest. He inward groaned, all he could see was Kendall scolding Katie for something. He couldn't tell for what, but if he had to guess, he would have assumed that it was something to do with her filthy shoes muddy dress. Maybe he was scolding her for jumping in mud puddles from the rain the day before. Carlos didn't know; all he knew was climbing the tree was a big waste of time and energy!

He was just about to climb back down when he saw a big, bulky guy heading straight for Kendall! Carlos couldn't tell just how big this guy was since he was still in the tree, but he guessed he had to be at least two times bigger than him, maybe only a size bigger than Kendall. He had a menacing look in his eyes that sent a chill down his spine. He wanted to warn Kendall, but that would blow his cover; all he could do was watch the scary looking kid as he stalked his way over to Kendall and Katie. He could only imagine what this guy was planning on doing to Kendall.

As the kid approached Kendall, Carlos crawled across the branch to get a better look. He could see Katie's eyes lingering up the tree and up to his. He quickly pressed his finger to his lips, pointing urgently to Kendall and her eyes snapped back to her brother's gaze.

Kendall must have thought Katie was looking at something behind him and turned to face him, standing bravely in front of Katie. Words were exchanged and although he couldn't hear what they were saying, he could only assume that it was something bad if he felt that he needed to protect Katie.

Finally after a few minutes of arguing back and forth, the boy decided it wasn't worth his time and went to leave, but not without bopping Kendall upside the head. Kendall was like a statue, not moving at all, and he kept the stone cold glare on his face.

As soon as the bully boy was gone, Katie stepped out from behind Kendall. Katie attached herself to Kendall's arm and Carlos presumed that Katie was badgering him to make sure he was ok. Kendall shook his arm loose and made a gesture for her to follow. She did so without complaint, but her eyes never left Carlos'.

As they passed Carlos' hiding place, their gazes broke apart. Carlos could hear Kendall muttering something about "Anthony" and "mean", but that was all he could hear before their voices got fainter as they walked further and further away.

Carlos sighed in relief upon not being discovered. He slowly began inching his way back towards the trunk of the tree, but about halfway there the branch let out a sickening cracking sound. His eyes widened and before he had time to scramble or the other side he was falling. He could feel air blasting through his shirt and although he'd only been falling for a few short seconds, to him it lasted an eternity. Carlos closed his eyes and prepared for impact.

He hadn't truly noticed just how high up he had been until after he hit the ground.

Somehow in his mess of flailing limbs, his head managed to hit the ground first, knocking the boy's unstrapped helmet clear off his head. Huh, that wasn't so bad! Carlos thought, but then opened his eyes and to his dismay the world was spinning. Nope, spoke too soon! He closed his eyes, begging for everything to stop spinning. He thought maybe he could just lie there until his head stopped spinning, then he would go home and clean himself up. Then...

"No way man! It was a tie!"

"You're out of your mind! I won! Whoa, whoa, whoa, Logan did you hear that?"

"What?"

"It's the sound of your butt crying because I kicked it so badly!"

Carlos had to resist the urge to roll his eyes. Maybe if he tried really hard, he could convince James into believing he was ok. But once Logan got a hold of him... Let's just say if Logan was back to his old, overly protective self, he'd be in trouble.

Logan opened his mouth to protest, but at that moment, he'd caught sight of their youngest friend lying motionless on the ground. "Whoa, is that Carlos?!" He screamed, dragging James over to him. They dropped their stuff and fell to their knees beside him.

James placed Carlos' head in his lap and the latter groggily opened his eyes.

"Carlos, are you ok?" Logan asked urgently.

"Hm? What?" Carlos asked, trying hard to focus on what was being said.

"Follow my finger, ok?" Carlos didn't protest and complied, performing the task as best he could. He was just grateful that his head had stopped spinning. "What's your name?"

"Carlos."

"Do you know how old you are?"

Carlos groaned, catching on to what Logan was doing. He was checking him for a concussion. "Nine."

"What happened?"

"I-uh- I fell out of a tree."

"While doing what?"

"I can't exactly tell you..." Carlos said hesitantly, looking away as Logan gave him a knowing look.

"We should probably get him home."

"What!" He sat up abruptly, but James pulled him back down. "No, I'm fine, I'm fine! I just need to go-?"

"The only place you're going is back to my house- I need to treat that gash on your hand before it gets infected and _possibly check for a concussion_." Logan explained, patting Carlos on the knee. He'd mumbled the last part under his breath, but Carlos still heard it and groaned again. Logan smiled sympathetically at him. "There, there, it won't be that bad. James, get him up." Logan instructed standing up.

"Come on, Carlitos, let's clean you up." James said, throwing Carlos' arm over his shoulder and hoisting him back to his feet. "Can you walk?"

"Yeah, I think so." Carlos mumbled.

Logan and James started to lead Carlos out of the park when James stopped, pulling the others to a halt. "Hang on!" He yelled, handing Carlos off to Logan.

"What are you doing?" Logan called after him, but he was ignored.

Carlos looked up a Logan with big pleading eyes; he felt bad for having to use the taller boy as a human crutch, and he guiltily placed his head on his shoulder. Logan patted his head in response. "It's ok." He muttered in a soothing voice.

James returned after a moment or two brushing dirt off of Carlos' discarded hockey helmet. As Logan helped Carlos stand up straight, James placed it on the injured boy's head and tapped it twice for good luck. Carlos blinked at the action, but didn't say anything about it. "Ok, let's go!"

"I don't want to," Carlos pouted, crossing his arms across his chest.

"Well, you kind of have to, buddy." Logan said, putting his arm around him and trying to coax him along. But Carlos planted his feet down, shaking his head defiantly; he instantly regretted it, placing his hand to his head and swaying slightly.

Logan and James looked at each other, then back at Carlos. For whatever the reason- whether it being a concussion doing his talking or Carlos just being emotional- Carlos really didn't want to go. Either way James really didn't want to have to drag him out of the park because that would only upset him and that could hurt him more than he already was; but Logan really needed to get him home to treat his wounds.

"Want a Piggy Back Ride?" James asked gently. Carlos looked up at James, pursing his lips to think it over. Finally he nodded and the two older boys smiled. James knelt down in front of Carlos. "Ok, buddy, hop on!" Carlos squealed in delight as he leapt onto his friend's back. As James began to stand, Carlos wrapped his arms around James' neck and his legs around his waist. James held onto his legs and readjusted him on his back. "You ready?" Carlos nodded early and off they went.

As Carlos was carried off and the dread of what he was about to endure lingered in his chest, Carlos couldn't help but let his thoughts wonder back to Kendall and how scared he must have been. He wanted to tell James about what he had seen; about how big that kid was and how he had smacked Kendall upside the head. The boys always smacked each other around, but they all knew it was playful; he knew better than to believe that what he saw was playful. What that kid had done was NOT messing around. It was bullying.

He wanted to tell James to stop at Kendall's house to tell him he saw everything and he wanted to make sure he was ok; but if he did that, he'd have to tell Kendall that he had been spying AND he'd have to tell James and Logan what was going on. Kendall would surely hate him for that.

He also he remembered Kendall's promise. He said he was handling it; and Kendall never broke a promise. All he could do was pray that Kendall would live up to his word...

**Well, what did you think? Did you like it? Hate it? Leave a review and let me know what you thought? Remember, I'm really open to constructive criticism!**

**That's all for now, until next time:**

**Peace, Love and Happiness!**

**-BrittSmiles4BTR**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey guys! I'm back with Chapter Four! **

**Thanks to:**

**Rusher Driver**

**winterschild11**

**KiBoy **

**And a special thanks to Anonymous Skrtle and ButterYUM for helping me up when I was down. You guys don't realize how much your kind words and advice help me. Just thank you so much for everything you guys have done. Without all the support and love from you guys, I probably wouldn't be where I am today. So thank you.**

**DISCLAIMER- I DO NOT OWN BIG TIME RUSH! **

**And remember that constructive criticism is always welcome, but please remember to be nice about it. I'm human too, with feelings and the things you say can hurt my feelings.**

Chapter Four

What It's Like

"Big brother, why do you keep looking over your shoulder?"

Kendall was brought back to reality at the sound of his little sister's voice. He'd been so preoccupied in his thoughts and walking Katie home that he'd unconsciously ignored her.

"Because, since I left Logan's I kept having the strangest feeling like someone was following me, but every time I turned around there was no one there!"

Katie shrugged and Kendall shook it off. He was definitely losing his mind.

Kendall looked at his sister and sighed. "You know Mom's going to kill you for getting all muddy, right?" He warned, not really realizing that he'd changed the subject.

Katie shrugged. "Kendall, why won't you tell me about that boy at the park? He was mean and I want to help!"

He could swear that sometimes Katie was worse than Carlos with all of the badgering she'd been doing.

When Kendall didn't reply, she sighed, just about ready to give up. She couldn't understand why so many people were being mean to her big brother. First the kid that Carlos was asking about, then-?

She stopped, her eyes becoming wide with realization.

"That was him, wasn't it?" she muttered in a low voice; she wondered if Kendall could even hear what she'd said.

Her question was answered when Kendall turned around and stared at Katie with a blank expression. "What?"

Katie looked up at him; her expression transforming dramatically from shock, to anger to disappointment in a matter of seconds. "That's the kid; the one who was messing with you, wasn't it?"

"Well, yeah but-?" Kendall stopped, backpedalling when he realized just who he was talking to. "Wait a minute- how did you know about that?"

Upon realizing she was about to get caught, Katie tried to backpedal too. "Well I-uh- heard you talking about it. In your sleep." Smooth. She reprimanded herself for lying- and badly at that- the last thing she wanted was for Kendall to think that she was some kind of weirdo that watched him while he slept. She would have sighed in relief when she found that Kendall seemed to be buying the lie for now, but that would have given it away that she was lying. As Kendall turned back around and proceeded to walk down the nearly deserted sidewalk, Katie tried again. "So who is he, anyway? And why is he messing with you?"

Kendall groaned in exasperation. He threw his head back, running his fingers through his hair before looking back at his little sister. "Katie, for the last time, he was no one! Besides, what could you do to help? He's bigger than both of us put together!"

Katie, who seemed to be taken back, continued hesitantly. "I-I could tell Mom; she said we aren't supposed to keep secrets from her and she could talk to his mom and-?"

Kendall stopped dead in his tracks, spinning around so faced that he feared that he would have whiplash. He stepped in front of Katie, halting her mid-step, glaring daggers down at the preschooler.

"No," he began darkly, wagging a finger in the younger girl's face like she was a dog who had just barked at nothing. "you cannot say a word about that to anyone."

"But-?" Katie tried to protest, but before she could say anything, she was cut off by Kendall.

"No! Listen to me, Katie, you are not to tell Mom about this, understand?"

"Why not?"

"Because I'm handling it on my own! I don't need my four-year-old sister fighting my battles!"

Katie's face displayed a mixture of hurt, fear, and worry as she stared up at her brother with big pleading eyes. But Kendall's expression was like stone, refusing to be altered in the slightest- not even by his baby sister's cute, yet frightening, eyes.

Katie was very smart for her age- most four year olds were too innocent to understand what was going on. But Katie did and she had never seen anything like this in her whole life... Well, at least not in real life; only in TV shows; and when the bully was mean to the hero on TV, they would always told an adult. So why didn't Kendall want people to know? Was he embarrassed? Was it his pride?

"Katie," her big brother's voice brought her back from her thoughts. She looked up at his solemn face and instantly knew what Kendall was thinking.

Her eyes widened and she shook her head. "N-no."

"Yes."

"No." Katie fired more forcefully, shaking her head more furiously.

"Yes," Kendall flared back, her eyes narrowing ever so slightly. "Katie I want you to pinkie swear." He ordered, holding his hand out with his extended pinkie for her to take.

Instead, she crossed her arms defiantly. "No!" she emphasized the word and made sure to punctuate clearly. She even stomped her foot for good measure.

"Do it or you'll never be allowed in my room,"

"So?"

Kendall continued as if she'd never spoken. "I'll never let you play with my toys again..."

"Oh, please." Katie scoffed, seemingly unfazed.

Kendall would have glared, but an idea popped into his head and left a wicked grin on his face. "AND, I'll tell mom about the online poker."

Katie's eyes suddenly were like saucers; big and wide and full of fear. Katie had watched her mother playing online once and somehow managed to figure out how to play. She loved it, but never told her mom; she was afraid that if she did, her mother might not let her play.

"You wouldn't."

Kendall laughed humorously. "Try me, pal! If you ever want to play it again, I suggest you pinkie swear now that you won't say anything to Mom."

"Okay." Katie grumbled. She sighed and looked down at her feet.

"Say it,"

"Say what?"

"Don't play dumb! Promise that you won't tell nobody."

"Darn it!" she figured that she would just say ok- that would mean that she never necessarily agreed to anything, right?

Katie sighed, preparing to say what Kendall had told her to say what her mother had told her to say. But she paused...there was something about the way he said it way he said it. It sounded strange. "Wait, what did you say?"

"Say 'I pinkie swear I won't tell nobody.'" Kendall said; by the sound of his voice, she could tell his patience were wearing thin.

Katie arched an eyebrow, confused. "I... I pinkie swear that I won't tell nobody." She repeated him perfectly, then she snapped her tongue, resisting the urge to scrunch up her nose when the words came out. It didn't sound like she was saying it right; but she just couldn't put her finger on what was wrong.

She tried to shrug it off when they walked down the street, him leading the way and her following sluggishly behind.

He noticed her sudden silence and wondered if he had maybe been a bit too hard on her. He shook it off; deciding that he would talk to her later after everything was back to normal as he and Katie made it to the front door. Before opening the door, Kendall made sure to look his sister square in the eye, making sure that he saw the seriousness in his eyes, making sure that she understood full and clear to not say a word to mom.

When he was certain that he'd gotten his point across, he went to grab the doorknob when she stopped him.

"You better be right about this." she muttered, and with that he pushed the door open and they slipped inside.

"Hey guys; you're back from the park early!" Mrs. Knight called as she came to the door.

"Mommy!" Katie squealed as she ran and jumped into her mother's arms.

"Hi, sweetie!" Mrs. Knight cooed as she lifted her youngest up off her feet and held her close. She pulled away from the hug just long enough to look her over; needless to say, she wasn't the least bit happy about what she was seeing. "Katie, you're covered in mud! Didn't I tell you you could go to the park with Sam if you stay out of the mud puddles.

Sam was the son of the next door neighbor; he had all but begged Mrs. Knight to allow Katie to accompany him on a trip to the park. She'd agreed on two conditions; that Kendall was to pick Katie up and bring her home after an hour and that Katie steered clear of the mud puddles.

"Yes, but the mud was so much fun and I just had to jump in it!"

Mrs. Knight sighed, looking down at her own newly, mud stained clothes. "Well it looks like its bath night." She said with a humorless chuckle. She looked down at Kendall, who had yet to say a single word since they walked in. "What about you, Kendall? How was Logan's house?"

Kendall looked up, trying hard to mask the look of fear in his eyes with a reassuring smile. "Fine." He said, nodding his head. Then, without another word, he turned on his heel and shuffled towards the stairs.

"Where you going, buddy?" His mother called after him, concern evident in her voice.

With a sigh, he stopped halfway up the stairs, turning to look at her face. "To my room." he answered simply, rubbing the back of his neck. "I'm-uh- tired." He wasn't lying; the whole ordeal with Anthony had left him a little weary.

"Oh." she mumbled, taken back by the answer. She chanced a glance at her watch and then up at her son. It was still pretty early yet; normally, the only time either of her kids wanted to go to bed early was if something were wrong. She silently shook off the feeling that Kendall wasn't telling the hold truth and tried her best to smile at her oldest son. "Um, ok. Keep your door open and I'll call you for dinner."

"Got it." He mumbled. He trudged up the stairs, listening as Katie began to talk.

"Mommy! I have to tell you something! It's real important!"

He assumed she was going to talk about something stupid like a butterfly she found; in a four year old's mind that kind of stuff is important.

Kendall pushed his bedroom door open, dragging his feet as he maneuvered around his scattered clothes and discarded toys to get to his bed. He checked the phone in his room and saw that he had missed several calls, a great majority of them from Carlos.

He sighed; he hated how much he was worrying his young friend. He placed his phone back on the dresser next to his bed, making a mental note to call them later.

he lied down on his bed and thought about everything that had happened.

He thought about Anthony and how he picked on him in front of his own sister. He thought about his friends and how worried they were before he left. He thought about Katie, and how she'd found out about everything that was happening.

Kendall sighed in a fit of frustration. "Unbelievable! What else could go wrong!" He huffed as he threw back his covers and laid his head down on his pillow, wondering how things had gotten so out of hand. With that thought in his mind, he closed his eyes and drifted off into a much needed sleep.

_Kendall pumped a handful of soap into his hands. Gosh, this is the last time I chug two waters before class! Carlos had dared him to do it, and being the stubborn kid that he was, he ignored Logan when he advised him not to and guzzled it down... only to really have to go to the bathroom fifteen minutes later. He was incredibly lucky that the teacher had let him go, otherwise there would have been some problems in Ms. Olson's fifth grade class._

_He shuttered at the memory of running as fast as he could to the bathroom as he lathered his hands and carefully turned on the faucet. He tried to scrub his hands as well he could, getting his knuckles and making sure his palms were squeaky clean. He remembered not being able to stop the chuckle in his throat as he thought about how much he sounded like Logan._

_He looked at the mirror, checked his hair- a habit he picked up from James- and did his signature hair flip. When he was sure that he was composed enough to go back to class, he shut off the water and shook his hands over the sink._

_He nearly jumped out of his skin when he heard a slam coming from right outside the bathroom door. He let out a small squeak of fear when he heard someone on the other side yelling. What the heck?! Unfortunately, he let his curiosity get the better of him. He snatched up a piece of paper toweling, dried his hands, and tossed it into the garbage bin. _

_He slowly pushed the bathroom door open and peeked out. His eyes practically bulged out of their sockets! He couldn't believe what he was seeing!_

_There stood Anthony. Even though the boy was only a year older than Kendall, the eleven year old boy still stood about a foot taller than him, easily towering over him. Anthony's thick eyebrows were knitted together in anger, but his eyes were wild with amusement. He sneered at the smaller boy; he could see Anthony's yellow teeth were bared together inside his mouth._

_Anthony was a bully; not only was the biggest, most terrifying bully he'd ever met in his life, but he was also the captain of the hockey team. Anthony was known for his bullying tactics- some of the kids he went to school with changed classes because of him, some even moved to different schools because they didn't want to be bothered by him!_

_Anthony must have found himself a new victim and - by the looks of it- was holding him by the collar of his shirt up against the lockers._

_Kendall shook his head to clear his thoughts, watching helplessly as the bully held the younger, defenseless boy up by the collar of his shirt. The other continued to scream words that seemed incoherent to Kendall. The whole world seemed to be moving in slow motion as he stepped a little further out the bathroom. He felt his heart drop into his stomach and he froze, unable to look away at the scene taking place right in front of his face._

_Kendall didn't know what to do; should he go and find a teacher to come and break up the fight? What if he couldn't get to one in time? What if Anthony hurt this kid before he'd have a chance to get him help? Surely, he couldn't just stand there! He had to do something and fast!_

_SLAM! Kendall found himself cringing as the sound erupted in his ears. The poor victim had been jerked about like a rag doll until finally he was slammed into a locker door. Kendall felt his limbs tightening up as he made a move to step in; nothing in his body would cooperate with him. Not his mind, not his arms, not his legs. All he could do was stand there and watch. Kendall felt his heart getting lodged in his throat as he watched Anthony raise a hand to strike._

_Suddenly, before he had time to react, Kendall was in the air, jumping in front of the fightened little kid. He'd somehow managed to weasel himself in between the bully and his victim, shoving Anthony away. The bigger, bulkier boy stumbled back in shock, his eyes growing dark as he realized just who had pushed him. Kendall's hands were raised high above his head as a signal to stop. Luckily, he'd managed to halt the boy mid punch._

_Everyone froze. _

_No one dared to move a muscle as Anthony and Kendall glared at each other. Kendall could hear the smaller boy whimpering behind him. Instinct told him to turn around and console him, but Kendall didn't dare try it; he didn't know if Anthony would try anything sneaky like punching him while he wasn't looking. So he stood fearlessly in front of the boy, waiting for someone to make the next move._

_"Well, well, well," the mere sound of his voice sent a chill down Kendall's spine, but he refused to let it show. "look what he have here, Knight's trying to be the hero," Anthony sneered at them, exposing his stained, yellow teeth. _

_"L-Leave him a-alone." Kendall cringed, wishing his voice would have come out more intimidating than that. Luckily, while Anthony was distracted, the smaller boy had taken this as an opportunity to struggle free and run._

_"Hey! Get back here you little-?" Anthony had gone to chase after the smaller boy, but Kendall bravely blocked his path._

_"Hey, leave him alone, man! He didn't do anything to you!"_

_"You're going to regret that, Knight!"_

_Every fiber in Kendall's body urged him to run and for once, his body complied with his wishes. He wheeled himself around Anthony before he could have time to grab him and took off in a sprint down the hall. He was hoping that Anthony would just give up and leave them both alone. Boy had he been wrong..._

_He had managed to make it about halfway down the hallway when a dark and sinister voice nearly made him freeze. "Get back here! You're dead; you hear me? DEAD!"_

_Kendall released the scream he had lodged in the backing his throat and sprang forward, fear fueling his every step. _

_Kendall's lungs were on fire. He looked up and he could swear that the class at the end of the hall was drifting further and further away._

_Before he had time to think, a hand shot out and he was seized by the back of the shirt and yanked to a halt. His mind was racing a million miles a minute as he tried to get free. With little effort he was spun around and slammed into a locker door. His back cried in agony and wished more than anything to have Carlos' helmet on his head. He grimaced, not daring to scream out. Kendall's breath caught as he looked down and found he was pinned about a foot off the ground. He clasped his hands around the boy's hands, which were holding him effortlessly off the ground, not really able to do anything else at the moment. _

_"When I tell you to stop, you stop! Got it?" He snarled, getting so close that he and Kendall were practically nose to nose. _

_"Y-Yeah, s-sure! I-I got it! Now just please let me go!" Kendall trembled in fear as he pleaded._

_Anthony let out a loud, hearty laugh; cackling as if Kendall had just told him the funniest joke he'd ever heard. He tossed him to the ground and Kendall yelped as his back collided with the ground._

_Kendall tried to scoot away from him, but Anthony- none to gently- stepped on his stomach to keep him from getting away. He couldn't stop himself from wheezing as the wind was knocked out of him. "Anthony, stop! Let me go!"_

_"No, I don't think I'm going to do that, Knight. I think you're going to pay."_

_"W-What are you going to do to me?" Kendall asked, even though he really didn't want to know._

_"You're going to wish you didn't do that, Knight. You're going to wish that you had just minded your own business." Anthony hissed, taking his foot off the boy's stomach and taking a baby step back. _

_Kendall, unsure of what was happening, pondered what he meant by "pay". What was Anthony going to do? Then it hit him. But it hit him too late and before he could even have time to think, pain shot through his stomach, then his chest. Kendall gasped as air slowly filtered out of his lungs. Tears stung in his eyes as Anthony punched his stomach and chest repeatedly. Suddenly, a boney fist collided with the side of her head, then again to his legs and arms. He cried out in pain as a fist came crashing into the side of his head again._

_Kendall tried his best to protect himself, but the fists were coming all at once and by the time he could get his hands up to his face to block one blow, another one was coming at his stomach, and then his face again! They were just too fast!_

_"Alright, man, I think you've had enough."_

_Kendall was breathing hard. His entire body hurt; he didn't even know it was possible to feel so much pain; and that was saying something considering that Kendall was in hockey and had suffered through all kinds of pain._

_ His dazed mind was not prepared for him to be lifted up off his feet and slammed against something hard. He glanced over her shoulder and found that she had been slammed against a class room door. He bit his lip and instinctively brought his hands up to Anthony's, unsure of what to do._

_Kendall cringed as Anthony glared deep into his eyes. Kendall could see that there was nothing but anger, rage and spite deep in the orbs of the bully. Kendall wanted to struggle to get free, but he knew better than to try. "Next time, I'm not going to go so easy on you." He growled, once again throwing the poor, injured boy onto the ground. "And you tell anyone about what happened here today, you'll be sorry."_

_Kendall was into much a shock to even dare to move. If that was going easy, he didn't even want to know what it would have been like Anthony wouldn't have held back._

_Then with one finally kick to the stomach, Anthony straightened his shirt and stalked down the hallway. As Anthony disappeared down the hall, Kendall carefully forced himself back to his feet. He chewed on his lip, his entire body hurt terribly from the senseless beating he'd just received. He attempted to walk himself back to class; he fumbled a bit, but managed to keep his balance. He figured that maybe later he could get Logan to fix him up when they got home._

Kendall sat up with a start. His eyes darted around and he quickly came to realize that he was back in room. Anthony wasn't there, he wasn't hurt anymore and he was safe now.

"It's just a dream. Just a dream." he muttered to himself, but he knew he was lying to himself. Because it wasn't just a dream. It was much more than that. It was real.

Kendall remembered all the times the boys would sleep over. Since they were kids, they always thought they were tough enough to handle scary movies. Consequently, one of them always ended up waking up in the middle of the night from a nightmare. James was older, so he knew better from experience. Logan was smart and was usually able to talk through his own nightmares. Carlos was the youngest, sensitive, most innocent and he was the most gullible. So often times, it was Carlos who had nightmares. Carlos always liked to come to Kendall when he had nightmares at sleepovers, claiming that it was a death sentence to try to wake up James or Logan early. So when Kendall would hold Carlos and explain to his youngest friend that dreams couldn't hurt him and that they were fake, Carlos would fall asleep with a smile on his face, knowing Kendall was right.

But he couldn't even tell himself that.

The knock on the door made Kendall jump. "Kendall?" a small voice called from the other side. Kendall could feel his heart thumping in his chest as he sat up in his bed. He looked up at the clock beside his bed and realized that he'd been out for about an hour.

Kendall suddenly felt panic erupt in the pit of his stomach. He'd been out for a whole hour! He hadn't stirred or woken up since he fell asleep! What if someone had walked in on him during his nightmare? What if his mom figured that something was wrong? What if Katie told her while he was asleep? What if-?

"Kendall!" his paranoid ramblings were interrupted by his mother calling again.

Kendall quickly swallowed the lump forming in his throat and forced back the quiver in his voice. "Yeah Mom?"

He could hear his mother sighing in relief before continuing. "Hey Big Man! Dinner time!"

Kendall sighed and forced himself out of bed. He dragged his feet as he walked over to where his mother was waiting. When he opened the door, his mother smiled down at him, and he tried his hardest to smile back. He then followed his mother down stairs.

Katie was already seated when Mrs. Knight and Kendall arrived at the table, chewing away at her dinosaur chicken nuggets. When Kendall sat down beside her, Katie gave him a cheeky grin. "Did you have a nice nap, Kendall?" she asked, her voice coming out muffled with her mouth full of nugget.

Kendall scrunched up his nose in disgust, but answered anyway. "Naps are for babies. I was just resting my eyes."

Katie rolled her eyes. "In other words, napping."

Kendall playfully glared at her. "Hey, shut up Katie-Cat!"

Katie sat up on her knees, slamming her hands on the table. "You first, Ken-doll."

"That's enough!" Mrs. Knight chided, and they both instantly settled down. Mrs. Knight set the plate of chicken nuggets in front to Kendall, who simply frowned and started picking at the food rather than eating it.

"Mom, there's something I need to tell you." Katie said, drawing her mother's attention as she set down her fork.

"What is it, sweetie? You know you can tell me anything."

"I know. And what I need to tell you is..." She trailed of as her gaze lingered back to her brother, who's eyes shown with both an angered, yet pleading expression.

_You promised_. He mouthed, shaking his head over so slightly.

She shook her head, snapping her head back to her mother's worried gaze. "Is that..."

She tried not to look at her brother, staring intently at their mother instead. But Kendall's eyes were drilling into her skull, making it hard for to breathe. She was so nervous that she just blurted the first thing that came to mind.

"Is that I play online poker!"

Kendall's eyes widened. Now there was nothing stopping her from telling his secret.

"You play what?"

"Online poker. I saw you playing it once and I couldn't help it. It looked like so much fun. I'm sorry." There was a long awkward silence as they waited for someone to speak.

"Well, that's a new one." Mrs. Knight muttered. "I suppose there's no harm done, but just don't play it when Mommy's not in the room, ok?"

Katie hated herself for chickening out. She really wanted to tell the truth so that she could get Kendall help, but she didn't want her big brother to hate her for it.

As she silently chewed away at her nuggets, waiting for someone to speak, Katie prayed that Kendall would see how good it would make him feel to get it off his chest.

It was a stretch, but it was worth a try.

With a look of concern, she sat down on the other side of the table. "Kendall, is there something bothering you?" she asked gently, her voice laced with worry.

Kendall looked up from his plate and met his mother's eyes. "No, I don't think so." he replied, shaking his head. He looked back at his plate and picked up fork, pushing the corn around.

"Are you sure, buddy?"

Kendall threw down his fork in frustration. "Yeah mom, I'm fine. Who told you I wasn't?"

"No one." she answered, a little too quickly for Kendall's liking. He watched her eyes unconsciously shifted to the small girl sitting next to him and, with a sinking feeling in his gut, wondered that maybe Katie had told already after she promised she wouldn't. Kendall shook it off, knowing Katie would never defy him and his wishes. "You've just been out of it for weeks now." she continued, drawing his attention back to her. "I barely see you anymore, and you've been pensive and-?"

"Pensive? What's that mean?"

"Pensive means thoughtful Kendall."

There was a long silence as Kendall let everything being said to him sink in. He shook his head to clear it and tried hard not to sound annoyed as he began to talk. "Mom, you're a really caring person; and that's one of the things I love about you. And I know you badger me because you care, but I'm fine. Look at me. I'm fine."

When Kendall saw that his mother still didn't look very convinced, he sighed. He took one big bite of his chicken nugget, washed it down with a swig of his milk, then hopped down from the table without another word. Mrs. Knight and Katie didn't dare try to stop him. They listened as his footsteps retreated up the stairs and back towards his room, when they confirmed he was heading when they heard his door closing.

When she was certain that Kendall was out of earshot, Katie sighed. She really hoped that her big brother would open up to their mother and let her know what was going on. She knew that with how stubborn Kendall could be that that was probably never going to happen. She wished that she could just tell their mother herself, but alas she promised not to tell, and everyone knows that you can never ever break a promise.

Suddenly her face lit up...

Kendall made her promise not to tell NOBODY... that meant she was not telling nobody... Doesn't that mean that she had to tell somebody? And Mom was definitely a somebody...

She grinned to herself. Oh how she loved loop holes!

"Mom!" she yelled suddenly, shocking her out of her thoughts. Katie grinned sheepishly, lowering her voice a bit. She had to tell her; at least that what she told herself when that sinking feeling returned in the pit of her stomach. It was the right thing to do. "I have something to tell you... It's about Kendall..."

**Well? What do you think? Did you like it? Hate it? Whatever you're thinking, let me know in the reviews, or maybe a PM. If you have any suggestions, thoughts, comments, let me know; I wasn't to know what you guys are thinking.**

**Well, that's it for now. Until next time, remember:**

**Keep reading, keep smiling, keep laughing, keep living! :)**

**Peace, Love and Happiness!**

**-BrittSmiles4BTR**


End file.
